EXCLUSIVE: TODD PAYTEN NAMES HIS TOP 17 PLAYERS

[jirskyr]

Surprisingly good read from Todd, these lists are usually quite plodding. I like how he gives some insight not only into the footballer, but the person.

He has also played with a lot of very good footballers, I forgot that he was at Raiders, Roosters and Tigers all around their recent peaks as clubs.

 

[Danos]

Updated: http://www.weststigers.com.au/default.aspx?s=newsdisplay&id=42511

1\. Brett Hodgson
2\. Noa Nandruku
3\. **Ruben Wiki**
4\. **Chris Lawrence**
5\. Pat Richards

Onya Rowdy! Gee thats a formidable backline.

 

[gold_on_black]

It's good to see that todd is choosing players based on what he rates and who he enjoyed playing with and not just following the usual EXPERT picked team.

Can't wait to see who he rates best out of Benji, freddy and lozza- im gonna go with benji

Although the big fella may go with an upset and rate himself the best 5/8

 

[king_sirro]

“Pat was a cracking bloke and the best all round sportsman I have seen in my time.

I remember from my school days he was an unbelievably good cricketer. Could have gone a long way if he chose that over League. Thankfully for us he chose League. I've no doubt he would of played a lot of Rep footy he if he stayed in the NRL.

I agree. He was the 2006 NSW winger for sure.

Even though he has won a grand final, gone overseas and made a stack of money and killed it….i'd put Pat down as one of those unfulfilled talents. I say this because he was about to achieve great heights in the NRL when he left.

 

[Guest]

TODD PAYTEN NAMES HIS BEST CENTRES
25/08/2011 3:21:33 PM

Wests Tigers Prop Todd Payten today names the best ever centres he has played with in his outstanding career from 1996 to 2011.

Exclusive to weststigers.com.au, Payten has named a 17-man team in positional order after reflecting on the players he played alongside at Canberra, Sydney Roosters and Wests Tigers.

It is all part of the countdown to Todd Payten’s last home game for Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Sports Stadium this Monday night.

Tomorrow, Payten names the best five-eighth and half-back he played with.

RUBEN WIKI

“I played a number of years with ‘Jake the muss’. Even though he did end up in the front row, he was devastating as a centre. Just ask Adrian Lam.

"Ruben was one of the best trainers I’ve seen and a very good bloke who was loved by all. It is no surprise to see the Warriors kept him involved with the club."

CHRIS LAWRENCE

“This might come as a bit of a surprise to some but ‘Rowdy’ is a world class centre who has his best football in front of him. He came into first grade at 18 and it was like he was a 10-year veteran with the way he handled it all.

“He is a smart kid and very professional in his approach, this is plain to see with his return from his hip dislocation. I look forward to watching the combination of him and the much underrated Blake Ayshford in coming years for the tigers. That’s if they don’t end up in the back row together.”

Todd's Payten team to date:
FULL-BACK Brett Hodgson
WINGERS Noa Nadruka, Pat Richards
CENTRES Ruben Wiki, Chris Lawrence

 

[Swordy]

It is interesting to see that the best players chosen by their peers are not always the same as those chosen by 'expert' selectors like Daley, Fulton etc.

Excellent read. Cant wait for the rest.

 

[Marshall_magic]

Good choices in the centres. Wiki and Lawrence are 2 of my all time favourite players. Team is looking very strong.

Halves tomorrow should be interesting
6\. Daley/Fittler/Marshall - is there really a wrong answer there?
7\. Prince/Stuart/Wing - again, no wrong answers.

I think Marshall/Stuart will get the nod, but there's no combination that would surprise me there.

 

[Marshall_magic]

TODD PAYTEN NAMES HIS BEST FIVE-EIGHTH AND HALF
26/08/2011 2:49:09 PM

Wests Tigers Prop Todd Payten today names the best ever five-eighth and half-back he lined up with in his outstanding career from 1996 to 2011.

Exclusive to weststigers.com.au, Payten has named a 17-man team in positional order after reflecting on the players he played alongside at Canberra, Sydney Roosters and Wests Tigers.

It is all part of the countdown to Todd Payten’s last home game for Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Sports Stadium this Monday night.

Tomorrow, (Saturday), Payten names his best lock and second-rowers.

Post your thoughts below on Todd's selections.

FIVE-EIGHTH: Brad Fittler

“I have put Freddie just in front of Benji and Laurie Daley. I have simply not seen anyone do things on the football and training field that I’ve seen Benji do but I have put Freddie in front of him because he was a player who I grew up watching, so in my eyes he was a hero.

“In my one year at the Roosters, I was a star struck kid around him. I heard some cracking yarns about Freddie and his partying ways. A couple from his own mouth but the Freddie I played with was a complete professional. He was always the first onto the training field and the last one off it.

“What you see on The Footy Show is exactly what he is like. Freddie, Benji and Laurie could turn a game and wanted the ball in crucial moments. That's what makes them all such good players. “

HALF-BACK: Brett Finch

“This will come as a surprise to some. Brett was not the most naturally gifted player but he worked incredibly hard on his game and made himself into a quality halfback that played Origin and in 4 Grand Finals.

Finchy is a genuine character and loved by everyone who played with him. Was very quick with his tongue and was constantly into opposition and team-mates alike. He loved a beer and would still be able to train the house down. I have never seen anyone like him in that regard.

“I chose Finchy ahead of Ricky Stuart and Scott Prince. Ricky was a guy I looked up to as a kid and was a very good organiser. He would bark his team around the field with great authority. His kicking and long passing changed the style of rugby league played in the early 90s.

“Andrew McFadden is another who I enjoyed playing with. He transitioned from the wing to half back the first season of grade football together and a few weeks later he was the starting halfback for the Raiders and held it until he signed with Parramatta.

"Princey was also very good to play with at Wests Tigers. His partnership with Benji played a major role in us winning the 2005 premiership.

“Now, I like to share a true Finchy story that happened on my birthday in 2004 when we were living in the ‘House of Grouse’.

“Following lunch at The Beach Road Hotel, myself, Finchy and three other blokes decided to pool in $50 each for a few bets as a syndicate. What Finchy proceeded to do over the next 4 hours, I will never see happen again. Rules were you backed a winner you kept going. Well he backed 9 straight winners.

“What intended to be a quiet couple turned into a near riot. He backed 19 winners from 23 races that afternoon. An old battler was sitting nearby and gave Finchy $5 and he turned it into $309 in 3 races. By the end of the afternoon all the patrons were in the TAB getting on and cheering home each horse Finchy would pick. He was in his element holding court amongst everyone and only allowing people to talk to him if they called him ‘Sir TJ’ as in TJ Smith.

“We closed the TAB twice because it ran out of cash, each time to a massive English soccer style chant to ‘we shut the tab.’ In the last race of the day, Finchy backed the winner paying $13 and they chaired him around the main bar of the pub. Needless to say I was a little under the weather the next morning at training!”

Todd's Payten team to date:
FULL-BACK Brett Hodgson
WINGERS Noa Nadruka, Pat Richards
CENTRES Ruben Wiki, Chris Lawrence
FIVE-EIGHTH Brad Fittler
HALF-BACK Brett Finch

http://www.weststigers.com.au/default.aspx?s=article-display&id=42596&title=todd-payten-names-his-best-five-eighth-and-half

Fittler isn't a massive shock, but I didn't expect Finch to make it. Love the Finch story though.

 

[Team_Tiger]

Brett Finch over Ricky Stuart? Mustn't have enjoyed playing with Ricky? Maybe he wasn't a fan of Ricky "barking his team around the field with great authority"?

 

[underdog]

Brilliant Story about Brett Finch!

Man, they must have walked away with some serious cash that night…
\
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Brett Finch over Ricky Stuart? Mustn't have enjoyed playing with Ricky? Maybe he wasn't a fan of Ricky "barking his team around the field with great authority"?

I'd take a stab at Ricky being around just when Toddy got started, and probably didn't think any more of Toddy than a run of the mill young prop at the time….

 

[spudoakes]

i didn't like fittler or daley as 5/8's i thought they were better centres but it is toddy's choice

 

[Tiger_Watto]

Brett Finch over Ricky Stuart? Mustn't have enjoyed playing with Ricky? Maybe he wasn't a fan of Ricky "barking his team around the field with great authority"?

I'd take a stab at Ricky being around just when Toddy got started, and probably didn't think any more of Toddy than a run of the mill young prop at the time….

Ricky's last 2 years at Canberra were not that nice… By the end of the 97 Season, Ricky was virtually exiled by his team mates and in 98, Stuart spent more time at his pub in Glebe than at the Raiders...

 

[king_sirro]

I actually like how he's taking different things into account when choosing this side rather than just who was the best. It gives the side character.

 

[innsaneink]

Great thread….very unpredictable, and yeh KS loads of character and originality, you can tell this is from the heart

 

[Goose]

How good is the Brett Finch story, can just picture the boys chairing him out of the pub! I had a similar story of closing the tab, a bloke we know had a tip on horse that 30ish to 1, the whole footy club was on it, the TAB had to give half the winnings by cheque, cause they didn't have the funds to pay us!
Brett finch is one of those blokes who is viewed very differently by the fans than those that know him. A lot of the guys I know have him in the "players they love to hate class"
I dont know him well but have crossed paths with him a few times and he is a champion fella, very funny and very down to earth, he gets chirped by punters and he laughs it off and turns them around pretty quickly.
I thought that Prince or Stuart would get the nod.

At five eight he really couldn't go wrong, Fittler, Benji and Daley all champions, I reckon Benji will be on the bench

 

[stryker]

Unusual team but you cant fault it as he was the one there experiencing everything. I only have 2 out of 7 right so far lol…Hodgo, Richo, Wiki and Finch all threw me.

Might be safe to say he didnt get on too well with the raiders superstars? Mullins, Daley and Stuart were all champion players but have horrible personalities. Maybe their arrogance towards younger players have seen them miss out...

 

[Goose]

Unusual team but you cant fault it as he was the one there experiencing everything. I only have 2 out of 7 right so far lol…Hodgo, Richo, Wiki and Finch all threw me.

Might be safe to say he didnt get on too well with the raiders superstars? Mullins, Daley and Stuart were all champion players but have horrible personalities. Maybe their arrogance towards younger players have seen them miss out...

I know stuart fits into that catorgory, well reknowned for it.

Daley was up against 2 other superstars,

Mullins IMO is flashy but no superstar, I ways rated Tim Brasher a far superior player, so I can see him missing out.

Im at 2 from 7 as well! I had Wiki in my front row, so maybe im 2 1/2

 

[innsaneink]

How good is the Brett Finch story, can just picture the boys chairing him out of the pub! I had a similar story of closing the tab, a bloke we know had a tip on horse that 30ish to 1, the whole footy club was on it, the TAB had to give half the winnings by cheque, cause they didn't have the funds to pay us!
Brett finch is one of those blokes who is viewed very differently by the fans than those that know him. A lot of the guys I know have him in the "players they love to hate class"
I dont know him well but have crossed paths with him a few times and he is a champion fella, very funny and very down to earth, he gets chirped by punters and he laughs it off and turns them around pretty quickly.
I thought that Prince or Stuart would get the nod.

At five eight he really couldn't go wrong, Fittler, Benji and Daley all champions, I reckon Benji will be on the bench

Rememeber i think it was 2008…centenary year and the NRL had a big pre season do at ANZ, the photographed all the squads together in one massive photo, then for some reason forget now they got all the indig and islander players together from all clubs for a photo too....somehow Finch managed to sneak in to the photo, this scrawny bad toothed white fella among all this big massive fobs...they all cracked up



 

[Marshall_magic]

TODD PAYTEN NAMES BEST LOCK AND SECOND-ROWERS
27/08/2011 1:39:32 PM

Wests Tigers Prop Todd Payten today names the best ever lock and second-rowers he lined up with in his outstanding career from 1996 to 2011.

Exclusive to weststigers.com.au, Payten has named a 17-man team in positional order after reflecting on the players he played alongside at Canberra, Sydney Roosters and Wests Tigers.

It is all part of the countdown to Todd Payten’s last home game for Wests Tigers at Campbelltown Sports Stadium this Monday night.
Tomorrow, (Sunday), Payten names his best hooker and props.

Post your thoughts below on Todd's selections.

LOCK: Bradley Clyde

“This guy changed the way locks played. Clydie was incredibly fit and had an appetite for work. He was another I used to get giddy and nervous to be around. I probably only played 20 games with him before he left Canberra as the last couple of seasons were hampered by injury but boy he worked hard. Was Canberra through and through and was adored by team-mates and fans alike.”

SECOND-ROWERS: Chris Heighington, Gareth Ellis

"I’ve gone for the Wests Tigers ‘Bruise Brothers’ in Gareth Ellis and Chris Heighington. Heighno has been at this Club longer than I have and he has become the mainstay of the pack. Whatever he does on or off the field, he does it at 100 miles an hour. His consistency over such a long period is incredible. I have seen him improve greatly. He works hard on his game and has a very smart football brain. He is exactly what the NSW Blues need.

"Once during a pre-season years ago, Heighno was at home on the Central Coast and the roads were closed due to bush fires. To make training, he got on a ferry, two trains and a bus to be there! True story. Also Heighno’s efforts grand final night 2005 still make me laugh. We all saw his howler of an interview. If you have a good look at the game, he went to jump on Daniel Fitzhenry and the group and totally went arse over head. And another celebration while on the bench, he went arse over head on camera cables

"Later at the club he got so caught up in the victory celebrations, he tipped a full schooner on Paul Sironen’s head and had to be taken home around 2am. He was so sick the next day, the doctor had to give him a shot to help him through the day to celebrate with the fans.

"I didn't know anything about Gareth before he came to Wests Tigers but I have been impressed. He is, in my opinion, the best Pommy import to come to our shores ever. It didn't take games or a season for him to find his feet in the NRL. From the first training session he was comfortable.

"He is another typical northern Englishman. He is an incredible athlete and a smart footballer. I don't think we have seen his ball playing ability yet but that's only because he’s mainly hitting holes out wide. Quite simply Gaz is one of the best players I’ve played with

These two beat guys like Mark O’Neill, Dave Furner, Craig Fitzgibbon, Mick Crocker, Brett Hethrington, Luke Ricketson, Liam Fulton. I could go on forever."

Todd's Payten team to date:
FULL-BACK Brett Hodgson
WINGERS Noa Nadruka, Pat Richards
CENTRES Ruben Wiki, Chris Lawrence
FIVE-EIGHTH Brad Fittler
HALF-BACK Brett Finch
LOCK Bradley Clyde
SECOND-ROWERS Chris Heighington, Gareth Ellis

http://www.weststigers.com.au/default.aspx?s=article-display&id=42631&title=todd-payten-names-best-lock-and-second-rowers

Clyde and Ellis are no surprise at all, but I didn't expect Hino to make it. Love how he tears strips off him for his celebrations though.

 

[Goose]

Im surprised Heighno made the team, glad he did tho.

pretty fair list of second rowers not selected